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Canberra Today 15°/18° | Friday, March 29, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Letters / Town planning or social engineering?

I REFER to Michael Moore’s column (“Arrogant Labor’s thumbs up to cynical push polling”, CN June 28) regarding questions requiring “black and white” responses to planning surveys.

The government is proposing Territory Plan Variations to include residential use of two large open-space blocks in North Watson. The consultants appointed to provide preliminary consultation have issued a survey, with three key questions. Question 2 is a classic: “Do you think there is likely to be a general demand for additional dwellings in this area?”

The response options are “Yes” or “No”, albeit with an option to provide supporting comments to the answer.  Given the demand for residential dwellings in virtually every area of every city in Australia, let alone the demand in this part of Canberra, what would possess someone to pose that question – a question upon which irreversible decisions may be made?  What credibility can be given to this survey when such a loaded question is one of only three questions?

These proposed plan variations will allow for more than 400 additional dwellings across the two separate land parcels, yet no consolidated traffic impact report was made available at the recent information session, just separate disconnected individual reports.  

Most residential properties in the immediate proximity of these blocks have at least two cars per dwelling; in some cases up to four or five. Yet the traffic reports seem to suggest that Aspinall Street (the primary entrance and exit street) will be subjected to only minor impact. I guess this conclusion is consistent with the mindset that posed the above Question 2.

This is not town planning, this is social engineering.

Geoff Murray-Prior, North Watson

Only thing working is the dunny!

ONCE more work has stopped on the Mirrabei Drive fiasco or are they

contemplating a revised construction? The only thing working for the past two weeks has been the lonesome dunny half way across the embankment.

As well I am still waiting for answers to my previous questions about costs and the cost overruns for these works and the light rail shemozzle.

My thanks to letter-writer Colin Lyons for his support, it’s a pity that more ratepayers don’t add their contempt of our so-called leaders and the waste of money because of inept governance and hiring of inadequate contractors.

How about a vote of no confidence to rid us of these greenie-led misfits?

Ray Leister, Amaroo

Thanks for the columns

THANKS for your various columns by Mike Weish, Michael Moore, Robert Macklin and especially Paul Costigan; informative and mind-expanding regarding our town and our government

Lesley McGrane, via email

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